Free advice for ‘Free Enterprise’ in B.C.

Martyn Brown, Special to The Vancouver Sun10.24.2012

B.C. Premier Christy Clark is hosting an open B.C. Liberals convention this week that invites supporters of free enterprise from outside of the party to discuss and debate policy on ‘Free Enterprise Friday.’Andrew Vaughan
/ THE CANADIAN PRESS

Martyn Brown, former chief of staff to ex-premier Gordon Campbell, adviser to three provincial party leaders and former deputy minister of Tourism, Trade and Investment in British Columbia.

This week B.C. Liberals will gather for their much-vaunted “open convention.” Premier Christy Clark says her party is “taking a bold and open step by inviting supporters of free enterprise from outside our party membership to join us to discuss and debate policy during ‘Free Enterprise Friday.’ ”

The gathering is a little less ambitious now that the premier’s earlier suggestions to rename her party and to invite a formal merger with the BC Conservatives under her leadership have been rejected. Still, it will be closely watched as yet another opportunity for her party to articulate a vision for renewal and growth that starts with an honest commitment to transparency, accountability and meaningful change that might re-earn public trust and confidence.

With the B.C. Liberals now badly trailing the NDP in opinion polls, they might consider advancing timely changes that would also enhance the Opposition’s role after the May 14th election. What matters is not the clatter of partisan promotion; it is the leader’s clarity of vision, the party’s plan for progress, and its commitment to lead change that it has the power to effect. The great thing about laws and public policies is that — like governments — they can always be improved and changed as need be, in the public interest.

As the B.C. Liberals contemplate how to use those tools to better position our province and their party for the future, they would be wise to move beyond the false dichotomy of “socialism” versus “free enterprise” that has long polarized political debate and choice in British Columbia and Canada.

It is an anachronism from a long-gone Cold War era that uses fear like a weapon to inhibit rational debate and to prevent any meeting of the minds between partisans. Although I am not a fan of the NDP, it is nevertheless a “free enterprise” party that is no less committed to growing the economy, to stimulating wealth creation and to fostering job creation through private enterprise. It just has different ideas about how best to achieve that, which at this point remains unclear by design. If the legislature was sitting, pressure would mount on the NDP to also clarify its plans and policies.

If the B.C. Liberals really want to show they are in touch with the times and are listening to British Columbians’ deep desire for change, they will use this convention to lay out a serious plan for real reform. They will show greater respect for political diversity and new regard for the value of opposition voices and parties, including in the B.C. Legislature. In the spirit of their “open convention,” I offer some initial suggestions:

1. Immediately recall the legislature to be accountable as a government and to use the precious time that power affords to advance a proactive agenda.

2. Change the standing orders to accord official party status and the resources it confers to any party that has two or more MLAs. Correct the glaring mistake that I helped the Campbell government make when it rigidly applied the current standing orders to deny Joy MacPhail and Jenny Kwan party status and its related funding and support resources in 2001. It was punitive, petty and hurt the government by suggesting an arrogance of power that the Clark government has done little to correct and much to exacerbate.

3. Repeal the discredited statutory requirement for balancing the budget on an annual basis. It was a well-meaning and philosophically admirable initiative that has proven to be unworkable when revenues fall by billions of dollars in a single year.

4. Commit to improving transparency about British Columbians’ net tax burden and tax competitiveness over time that includes the net impact of fees, licenses, premiums, tolls and permits on taxpayers at various income levels. The limited taxation “scenarios” that are shown in the budget for some “typical” types of families do not show the net impact of various forms of taxation that government imposes over time. Taxpayers deserve to know how the tax benefits that are extended on one hand are effectively clawed back and negated by hidden taxes, such as tolls, car insurance premiums, BC Hydro rate increases and other means that are used to flow hidden tax revenues to government and to finance capital projects.

5. Be honest and transparent about the true cost of government advertising, including the current multi-million campaign. Refer all major proposed government ad campaigns to an all-party committee that can scrutinize and approve or reject those expenditures, and make public that information as soon as any ad campaign goes public.

6. Invite Opposition MLAs to help review and improve draft government bills that are, in principle, supported by all parties. Create an all-party legislative review committee that vets and informs such non-contentious bills, to give all legislators a more meaningful role in law-making, to save precious debate time in the legislature and to strengthen legislation before it is introduced for first reading.

7. Allot a portion of each budget – perhaps $50-100 million — to the official Opposition to allocate as it sees fit, for its most important priorities in light of any given budget. Allow the Opposition real power that carries with it real accountability for making hard budget choices that help remedy perceived underfunding in critical areas and that enable the Opposition to better represent British Columbians’ interests.

8. Change the legislated set election date from the spring to the fall, effective for the next Parliament, in the fall of 2016. This would ensure that the annual budget is passed in an advance of an election and that the audited public accounts for the year past are released before people vote, to clarify and confirm the province’s true fiscal situation.

Martyn Brown is the author of the ebook, Towards A New Government In British Columbia, available on Amazon. He was former B.C. premier Gordon Campbell’s chief of staff, strategic adviser to three provincial party leaders, and a former deputy minister of Tourism, Trade and Investment in British Columbia.

Comments

We encourage all readers to share their views on our articles and blog posts. We are committed to maintaining a lively but civil forum for discussion, so we ask you to avoid personal attacks, and please keep your comments relevant and respectful. If you encounter a comment that is abusive, click the "X" in the upper right corner of the comment box to report spam or abuse. We are using Facebook commenting. Visit our FAQ page for more information.

Share

Free advice for ‘Free Enterprise’ in B.C.

Video

Business Videos

Best of Postmedia

Swoop has yet to pick up a single customer, but Canada’s newest ultra-low-cost carrier is already talking about expanding into a market that is just taking off. Launched by WestJet Airlines Ltd., Calgary-based Swoop started booking customers this month for flights that begin this summer connecting five Canadian cities. It is offering discounted fares on […]

Director Ryan Coogler admits he was surprised by the initial feedback he got from the bigwigs at Marvel Studios when he began sharing his vision for its next franchise, Black Panther. After all, he was set to make a $200-million epic blockbuster; a popcorn movie that mixed dazzling special effects, heart-stopping action sequences and sprawling […]

At the 1988 Winter Olympics in Calgary, Mary Ormsby of the Toronto Star took one look at the fit, spandex-laden forms of the cross-country skiers and declared: “I have found my new sport.” Ormsby wasn’t a typical out-of-shape scribe. She had been an all-American volleyball player at Ohio State, so knew athletics from both sides. […]

Almost Done!

Postmedia wants to improve your reading experience as well as share the best deals and promotions from our advertisers with you. The information below will be used to optimize the content and make ads across the network more relevant to you. You can always change the information you share with us by editing your profile.

By clicking "Create Account", I hearby grant permission to Postmedia to use my account information to create my account.

I also accept and agree to be bound by Postmedia's Terms and Conditions with respect to my use of the Site and I have read and understand Postmedia's Privacy Statement. I consent to the collection, use, maintenance, and disclosure of my information in accordance with the Postmedia's Privacy Policy.

Postmedia wants to improve your reading experience as well as share the best deals and promotions from our advertisers with you. The information below will be used to optimize the content and make ads across the network more relevant to you. You can always change the information you share with us by editing your profile.

By clicking "Create Account", I hearby grant permission to Postmedia to use my account information to create my account.

I also accept and agree to be bound by Postmedia's Terms and Conditions with respect to my use of the Site and I have read and understand Postmedia's Privacy Statement. I consent to the collection, use, maintenance, and disclosure of my information in accordance with the Postmedia's Privacy Policy.